Glassware, such as volumetric flasks, beakers, test tubes and the like are commonly used in laboratories. After each use in a laboratory test or procedure, the glassware must be thoroughly cleaned to remove deposits which could contaminate materials that are subsequently contained in the glassware. Glassware is often cleaned manually with a brush. However, this manual procedure is generally undesirable because it requires considerable time and effort.
To minimize manual cleaning time, laboratory glassware washing machines have been developed. Known laboratory glassware washing machines operate analogous to household dishwashers wherein the glassware is placed on racks within the washing machine. More specifically, the glassware is inverted such that the mouth and the neck of the glassware is received on a spindle extending vertically from the rack. Typically, the racks are movable on shelves into and out of the washing chamber of the glassware washing machine. At least one spray arm is typically located beneath the rack to apply upwardly directed wash and rinse sprays for washing and rinsing the glassware. Such glassware washing machines typically include a drying cycle for drying the glassware with heated air circulated within the washing chamber of the glassware washing machine. Although this type of glassware washing machine effectively cleans and dries a variety of different types of glassware articles, it has some drawbacks. As will be appreciated, the glassware to be washed, namely, flasks, beakers, test tubes and the like, come in many different sizes and shapes. For example, test tubes are generally smaller in width and height as compared to beakers or flasks. In addition, graduated cylinders are manufactured to have a wide range of heights and diameters, and flasks and beakers typically have enlarged bottom portions requiring more room when being washed.
To maximize the number and type of glassware articles that can be washed at the same time during a washing cycle, it is known to provide washers having removable and replaceable shelf and rack systems. Washers with removable racks or shelves allow an operator to choose a rack designed to receive a particular size of glassware, or to remove shelves to allow taller, elongated glassware to be positioned on lower racks within the washing chamber of the washing machine.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,571,812 to Lavoie et al. discloses a universal shelving system having a permanent lower shelf for supporting a plurality of removable racks and an upper shelf comprised of three (3) shelf sections, each of which can be removed from the washing chamber to allow the racks on the lower shelf to hold taller, larger glassware that would not normally fit within the space between the upper and lower shelves. The washing chamber disclosed in the aforementioned patent includes a generally U-shaped fluid conduit that extends along the back wall and side walls of the washing chamber to provide washing and rinsing fluids to the racks and articles to be washed on the upper shelf. The U-shaped fluid conduit is disposed at approximately the mid-level in the washing chamber, and includes openings that allow for attachment of the aforementioned shelf sections, that form the upper shelf, to the channel. The shelf sections, when attached to the U-shaped conduit, are in fluid communication with the washing and/or rinsing fluid that is circulated through the U-shaped fluid conduit by the washer. The fluid is then conveyed through the shelf sections into the racks wherein the washing or rinsing fluid is directed into to the spindles and to nozzles in the spindle that direct the fluid to the interior of the glassware.
The shelving system disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,571,812 allows individual shelf sections to be removed from the upper shelf to facilitate taller and larger glassware to be placed on the lower rack and shelves. When a shelf section is removed from the upper shelf, flaps associated with the opening in the fluid conduit would generally close off the opening such that washing or rinsing fluid would not flow through the opening during a washing or rinsing cycle.
While the shelving system disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,571,812 was an improvement over the then-existing prior art, the configuration and position of the U-shaped fluid conduit generally limited insertion and removal of racks into the washer to one side, i.e., the front face, of the washing apparatus. Still further, each shelf section was mountable within the washing chamber in only one, specific location. Still further, the U-shaped fluid conduit had a rectangular cross-section that created problems in draining fluid from the system after the washing and rinsing cycles.
The present invention provides an improved shelving system of the type heretofore described and provides a fluid distribution line disposed outside the washing chamber and shelf sections that are mountable on the side walls of the washing chamber such that racks that are supported on the shelf sections may be inserted and removed through the front face and back face of the washing apparatus. Still further, a shelving system according to the present invention provides a mounting structure wherein each of the shelf sections can be mounted to each of the side walls of the washing chamber. In addition, the shelving system includes fluid connections that allow for more accurate sealing between a fluid distribution line and the shelf sections, and between the shelf sections and racks supported thereon to provide a more fluid tight connection therebetween.